Old Rivals Obama, McCain Battle Over Iran Nuclear Deal

President Obama jumped to defend Secretary of State John Kerry this weekend, after Senator John McCain questioned his honesty in regard to the nuclear deal with Iran during a radio appearance on Thursday.

“John Kerry is delusional,” McCain said on the Hugh Hewitt show. “I think you're going to find out that they had never agreed to the things that John Kerry claimed that they had."

President Obama fired back at McCain during a press conference in Panama.

“When I hear some, like Sen. McCain recently, suggest that our secretary of state, John Kerry, who served in the United States Senate, a Vietnam veteran, who's provided exemplary service to this nation, is somehow less trustworthy in the interpretation of what's in a political agreement than the Supreme Leader of Iran -- that's an indication of the degree to which partisanship has crossed all boundaries,” he said.

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McCain’s criticism of Kerry, and Obama’s response, stem from both men’s differing interpretations of the framework deal signed in Switzerland by the U.S., its allies, and Iran. McCain said during his radio interview that he essentially believes Kerry is purposely misrepresenting the framework deal to in order to get domestic support.

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“When you start getting to the point where you are actively communicating that the United States government and our secretary of state is somehow spinning presentations in a negotiation with a foreign power, particularly one that you say is your enemy, that's a problem,” Obama said. “It needs to stop.”

McCain responded to Obama’s comments on Saturday evening, first releasing a brief statement.

“These widely divergent explanations of the nuclear deal must be fully explained and reconciled if we are to give serious consideration to this agreement,” the statement read. McCain followed up his statement with a more direct tweet.